they left behind, Works Minister Alex Scott told MPs on Friday.

Mr. Scott, opening for the Government in the Budget Debate, said talks had been taking place with the US Government with regard to the Longbird Bridge in St. George's.

And he said he was concerned about the condition of the structure and that the Americans were still very much "on the hook'' with regard to its upkeep.

He said talks had taken place recently in the US and a report would soon be made to Cabinet on the situation.

He added that if the bridge broke down it would be down to the Bermuda Government to repair it, but they would then go to the Americans for the money.

Health Minister Nelson Bascome congratulated Finance Minister Eugene Cox for producing a miracle in his first Budget in a matter of weeks.

And in a response directed at UBP MP Michael Dunkley, he said many of the industrial problems they were dealing with were left behind by his Government.

People were the Country's greatest resource but they had been forgotten in pursuit of the dollar, he said.

"I can remember when Bermudians were considered to be the most friendly people in the world. When you look at where we are today, what a price we had to pay for prosperity.'' The Minister turned to the issue of providing for seniors, saying he had a mandate to help them. "I went to one rest home,'' he said. "I couldn't believe the state, it was substandard and decrepit,'' he said.

A pledge to help the plight of the African-Bermudian male was also made by Mr.

Bascome.

He said a large segment of the population was being trapped in drug abuse, imprisonment, unemployment and lower wages.

Their plight had not been focused upon but now would be by the PLP.

The deregulation of the telecommunications industry may take several years and its ultimate guise could depend on the courts. That was the message from Minister Renee Webb , who vowed to toughen up the Telecommunications Act.

She said it had too many loopholes and was inadequate for the present and future.

Government was committed to opening up competition in the industry and she stressed it was natural for businesses which had been operating in a monopoly to try and protect themselves.

At a recent meeting with former US President Jimmy Carter, the ex-leader told her that he had started the deregulation of the US telecommunications industry but the final decision had rested with the courts.

In addition, she said the growth of e-commerce meant Bermuda needed to update its own infrastructure to cope with the demands of electronic business.

The Post Office, BTC and Customs operation were examples of organisations that needed speeding up, she said.

"Companies do not want to find out that they have to wait two to six weeks to get a phone in place,'' she said.

Dale Butler (PLP) said feedback from his constituents on the Budget was pleasing.

On the question of taxation, he said he was looking forward to seeing what recommendations the consultant's report on tax made.

It was time the imposing portraits of Queen Charlotte and King George were dumped from the House of Assembly, he added.

Mr. Butler said the portraits had no place in the House any more and could instead be moved to the National Gallery.

Shadow Health and Social Services Minister Kim Young said the Opposition supported many of the Budget's features since while it was still in power it had set down the foundations for several of the programmes.

But she said there was no point in some of the Budget's allocations to improve health care when the elderly would never be able to take advantage of the advances since they simply did not have the money.

And she called on Mr. Bascome to set up a commission to investigate what could be done to help seniors cope.

Delaey Robinson (PLP) accused Shadow Finance Minister Grant Gibbons of "playing the figures'' in his reply to the budget rather than looking at their true meaning.

"The people of Bermuda represented a people's government and had every confidence the Government would spend money on people unlike former Governments who spent money on buildings -- bricks and mortar,'' he said.

He said about half of the $35 million increase on the current account was to go into education and health to be "spent on people rather than buildings''.

And while the UBP government had spent more than $60 million on capital development, the PLP was spending just over $30 million which showed the different priorities.

Shadow Minister of Works and Engineering C.V. (Jim) Woolridge defended the former Government's capital works projects which he said had repeatedly "kickstarted the economy'' in providing many jobs for Bermudians.

He said he resented Mr. Robinson giving youngsters the wrong idea about the past few decades and "sowing seeds of dissension''.

"No wonder some young people have problems feeling good about themselves when an elected official comes here and says things that are just wrong.'' The new e-commerce sector should bring job opportunities for Bermudians, according to Home Affairs Minister Paula Cox .

And Ms Cox said she would make sure, with the Minister of Development and Opportunity, that there was a strategic plan to train people so they could take advantage of the growth.

Integral to the plan was the management of work permits and immigration, she said.

A computer system to help monitor permits and breaches, and a Green Paper on long term residents were all key parts.

Derrick Burgess (PLP) reignited the row over the demolition of former Baselands housing. He claimed homes that could have been used for Bermudians were knocked down on purpose before the Election by the UBP.

There must be a stock of rental homes for the low income, he said, adding: "Bermudians would rather pay their own way than receive handouts.'' Wayne Perinchief (PLP) said the difference in the PLP's first Budget was one of philosophy.

"The UBP believe in creating wealth and allowing it to trickle down,'' he said. "We believe in a policy of re-distribution of wealth, we have seen that demonstrated with social programmes and education.

"The trickle down economy doesn't work any more.'' Transport Minister Ewart Brown said the Airport was a great symbol for the Country and would continue to be improved.

A director of entertainment had been appointed to oversee the "joyful'' welcome given to visitors and residents.

Backbench PLP new boys El James and Randolph Horton joined forces to batter the UBP on education.

Mr. Horton said they were currently spending $500,000 at Bermuda College, teaching young people things that should have been learned in secondary school.

The Hamilton West MP, himself a former headmaster, said the UBP had failed the country on the subject of education.

Mr. James hailed the pledge on the reduction of class sizes, stating that research showed that a substantial part of a child's learning came in the early years.

And he slammed the UBP for investing millions in places like CedarBridge and Westgate, which was filled by the young adult males, while young people were broken in society.

"It took the UBP 32 years to break the system, it won't take us that long to fix it,'' he said.

John Barritt (UBP) said he was looking forward to the PLP saying what it was going to do with the $54 million surplus.

He said it was time for the PLP to stop blaming the UBP for what had happened in the past and get on with saying what their plans were.

Shadow Tourism Minister David Dodwell continued the monetary theme, slamming Mr. Robinson over spending.

"Mr. Robinson said our capital projects were high and the PLP's would be human capital based,'' he said.

He then compared the $53 million spent by the UBP on capital projects, with the $49 million projected by the PLP, in addition to the $9 million carried forward.

And of tourism spending in the Budget, he warned the PLP should be spending more money at home, improving the service it offered to visitors before going abroad to woo people here.

Of the Morgan's Point resort development, Mr. Dodwell said care had to be taken when the subject of housing came up with the developers.

The housing element had to enhance the project and you couldn't marry low-cost homes with a top level development, he said. "If you inject low-cost housing, that company will go south.'' Tourism Minister David Allen hit back that air arrivals had hit their lowest point in 25 years -- with a drop of 25 percent.

He quoted figures that showed bed capacity, bed nights, visitor expenditure and the number of Bermudians in the hotel industry had all fallen under the UBP.

Former educator and computer trainer Neletha Butterfield (PLP) emphasised the value of the Budget's focus on training.

She said the men and women in prisons -- who were brothers, fathers, uncles, sons, aunts, sisters, daughters and mothers of the population at large -- had been forgotten for too long.

"The new Budget is providing funds for lifeskill programs in prisons to reintegrate those people into the community.'' Minister of Development and Opportunity Terry Lister said: "One of the things were going to achieve is to clean up the bases. The Opposition have said we should be acting soon to capitalise on things like the clean up which the Opposition had four years to do.

"We've had three years to do it and we're being told to hurry up.'' But his counterpart, Allan Marshall (UBP) cut down some of Mr. Lister's big claims.

He said UBP Governments had "created the most wonderful place in the world'' and left the PLP with a big surplus with which to work.

And he said the window of opportunity for the US Government to pay for the base clean-up had only opened last year when, for the first time, the US had agreed to pay for a mop-up in Canada.

So Dr. Gibbons had only pointed out in his reply that Bermuda must not let that window close.

Premier Jennifer Smith lamented the amount of money spent on education whilst standards were poor.

She said things still hadn't improved in the ten years since reforms were started.

Literacy was an issue, and there was a need to measure standards so levels could get better.

There was a need to make a success of education, as there were young people that excelled whilst there were others who slipped through the net.

Opposition Leader Pamela Gordon said it was no time for finger pointing or blame, but to look at the problems and set about fixing them.

On the clean-up of the former US bases, Ms Gordon warned the Government that they needed to address the Americans before April, so any compensation would come through by October.

If the PLP left it too late, then any deal would have to wait until the following year to be ratified, she said.

With reference to the upcoming OECD conference, the former Premier implored the PLP not to make the trip with an entirely political entourage.

She said it was important from a credibility and "believability'' point of view to include non-partisan members in the visit.

The UBP made such trips with business leaders and other experts, so they were accountable and answerable to the public on their return.

Finance Minister Eugene Cox said he and the Premier had met with officials at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office in London, and they would be putting Bermuda's case on the clean-up.